Entertaining children while a family is traveling in a vehicle such as a car or van, has been made easier with the development of audiovisual equipment suitable for placement in vehicles smaller than a bus or RV (recreational vehicle). It is known to place a small portable TV, optionally with an associated videotape player in a vehicle. Although such equipment can be built-in to a vehicle, this is quite expensive, and is only feasible for larger vehicles (e.g., RV or large conversion van). Newer, small video players and/or display screens (e.g., DVD players) can be built into the ceiling, dashboard, or seatbacks of vehicles, but this is also expensive, and many would prefer to have a portable player that is not permanently part of a single vehicle. Another solution is to place the equipment on a seat, or to balance it on the console/armrest between the front seats, but this presents the dangerous possibility of heavy objects flying around the vehicle during sudden stops or accidents. Thus various racks and systems have been created to hold portable equipment by fixedly or removably attaching the equipment to a rack that is permanently, or preferably removably, mounted within the vehicle, preferably in a position to be viewed by one or more occupants of rear seats in the vehicle's passenger compartment.
The prior art contains numerous examples of racks for mounting food trays, work/play surfaces radio equipment, etc. within the passenger compartment of vehicles. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,071,728 (Grace, et. al; 1963) discloses a folding shelf/bracket attached to a car dashboard for removably holding a portable auto radio receiver. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,032,779 (Titley; 1962) discloses a shelf (98) that mounts on the back of an auto seat by means of attachment clips or sockets screwed into the seat back. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,067,661 (Ferrelle; 1937) discloses a shelf (20) extending between auto window sills (hooking into window slots), or a shelf(31) mounted on a seatback using brackets (29) that are screw-attached to the seat top/back in order to provide slots for L-hook support brackets (30). For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,678,249 (Rhoads; 1954) discloses a shelf (10) suspended from two “spring arms” (13, 14) that are pivotably engaged with brackets attached to either side of a vehicle ceiling. The spring arms are not described adequately to determine the nature of the springiness. The length of the spring arm is adjusted with a turnbuckle (22). In the down position, the shelf rests on the top of a front bench seat, held in place by the spring arms. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,818,317 (Little, Jr.; 1957) discloses an automobile hanging desk or table comprising a shelf that is suspended from a telescoping square rod assembly (165) that presses outward against sides of the car ceiling. A solid rod (22) slides within tubes on either end, and knurled nuts (24) engage with threads on the solid rod to press outward when tuned.
With the advent of front seat headrests (head restraints), particularly ones that are height-adjustable by using support posts, a convenient new means for attaching vehicle equipment racks became available.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,231,017 (Watkins; 2001) discloses a mount bar (10) for video recording and display devices. The mount bar (10) is attached at distal ends to headrest posts (24) and extends between two front seats (28) of the vehicle. The disclosed display equipment includes a monitor (46, e.g., a TV) and optionally a VCR (52) that are attached to a shelf (44) that is suspended below the mount bar in a frame (30) positioned between the seats. In column 3, lines 18-23, the description states that the display is secured to the shelf (44) by means of threaded fasteners (50) or straps (not illustrated). FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 (described in columns 4-6) show telescopically connected multiple-tube mount bars, all bolted together to achieve a rigid, fixed-length bar that is then bolted to the headrest posts using bolts (118) and brackets (110).
It appears that for much of the prior art, and in particular for the rigid mount bar of Watkins '017, there is a risk of injury to rear seat occupants who may be thrown forward against it in sudden or accidental stops. Furthermore, it appears that installation and removal of devices such as the Watkins '017 mount bar is likely to be inconvenient and time consuming, if not difficult.
With the advent of small flat screen displays (e.g., LCD), and especially with the availability of small storage media (e.g., DVD discs) and accompanying players like the now readily available DVD players for a wide selection of DVD recorded movies, vehicle equipment racks can become correspondingly smaller and more convenient. Although the DVD players are small enough to be handheld or placed in a lap of an individual viewer, where multiple viewers are involved, and/or when one or more children are to be the viewers, then convenient, safe and secure mounting of the player is most desirable. A further concern is security, in that a mounted player should be easily and quickly removable for secure and/or hidden storage (e.g., in a car trunk) whenever the vehicle is left unattended. Also, especially when children are involved, front seat occupants should be able to see and reach back seat occupants without interference by the equipment rack, and it is desirable that the front seat occupant be able to access the player in the rack for the purpose of controlling its operation. A further concern is preservation of unobstructed rear-view mirror visibility for the driver.
US Patent Application Publication No. US 2002/0175254 (Lee; 2002) discloses an adjustable monitor bracket for attaching to both poles (44) of a single headrest (42) by means of bolted-on T-shaped blocks (16, 18). The bracket has a fixed bar (10) extending from the headrest to a pivot point between the seats. A movable adjustable bar (20) is pivotably attached at one end to the fixed bar, and has a tray (24) at the other end. A fastener (242) is pivotably and rotatably attached to the tray and has a fastening screw (244) for removably attaching a monitor (50, e.g., LCD screen). Safety provisions include rubber padding (not numbered) and pivoting in response to impact, wherein the pivoting amount is limited by a stop (60).
In addition to the above patent prior art, the inventor is aware of at least three different commercially available methods for addressing many of the above-described concerns as embodied in removable (non-built-in) vehicle equipment holders: a seat-top player, a console-mount system, and a seat suspension bag system All of these systems, however, suffer from limitations that are addressed by the present invention.
The RCA (Thompson) DVD/CD/MP3 player model number BLD774, as viewed on an RCA website (www.rca.com), is a nine pound portable player with a built-in handle. When used in a vehicle, the player rests on the center portion of a bench se is apparently held in place by the center lap belt which is passed through the back of the player, and the display screen folds up on a hinge at the front end near the front edge of the seat.
The Kwik Klip (patent pending) DVD Vehicle Mounting Bracket for Portable DVD Players; as viewed on the MITO Corporation's marketing website (www.mitocorp.com) provides a bracket that angles upward from where it is attached to a center floor console between front bucket seats in selected vehicles having suitable consoles. The vehicle specific bracket is said to install in less than 10 minutes and apparently removably clips onto the bottom of a portable DVD player.
The Suspension Theater™ (patent pending, trademark registered to CFS Products, LLC) as viewed on the MITO Corporation's marketing website (www.mitocorp.com, plus a link therefrom to an 11 page installation manual) comprises a main storage case, a player wallet/suspension platform, suspension straps, and a shoulder carrying strap. The main storage case is a portable carrying case that contains the other items plus a user-supplied portable DVD player (limited by the size of the case). The installation manual details three 9 step procedures for removably installing the platform and player “in minutes” in “virtually any vehicle”: (a) between two bucket seats, (b) behind a single bucket seat, and (c) behind a bench seat. In each case, the platform is arranged in a triangular form and then suspended from the seat top(s) by straps that in most cases encircle the headrest(s). Additional straps secure the platform to a “bar, rod, or fixture” of the car that must be found below the seat. The securing straps are said to “keep up and down bouncing to a minimum,” but the platform “will not be completely free from slight swaying.” Once the platform is suspended and secured, the player's base is held on the platform by a lower L-shaped bracket and an upper Velcro strap. Optionally, self-adhesive Velcro strips can be adhered to the bottom of the player for providing added adherence to the Velcro receptive platform surface. Notice is given that: “some portable players with displays that do not open to a full 180 degrees will ONLY allow a proper viewing angle when suspended between two front seats.” Caution notices include the following: “Once the suspension platform is adjusted and secured, use caution when moving the seat it is attached to. Excessive movement may damage the straps, plastic swivel snaps, or even the suspension case.”
It can be seen from examination of the abovementioned prior art that various means are disclosed for attachment or mounting of vehicle equipment racks within the vehicle. Additional potentially relevant prior art racks or shelves and their attachment means, particularly means for attachment of a shelf to a vertical post, are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. No. 6,330,337 (Nicholson, et al.; 2001); U.S. Pat. No. 6,315,180 (Watkins; 2001); U.S. Pat. No. 3,221,678 (Doherty; 1965); U.S. Pat. No. 3,097,884 (Alford, 1963); U.S. Pat. No. 2,996,193 (Olson; 1959); U.S. Pat. No. 2,984,443 (Bergengren; 1961); U.S. Pat. No. 2,768,043 (Kristoff et. al.; 1956); U.S. Pat. No. 2,649,972 (Weil; 1953); U.S. Pat. No. 2,299,025 (McGinley; 1942); U.S. Pat. No. 207,804 (Gunther; 1878); and the US Patent Application Publication No. US 2002/0157431 (Lurie, et al.; 2002). Of interest among these references is Alford '884 which discloses a lever-operated hook for clamping around a post; and Weil '972 which discloses a shelf between two substantially vertical parallel support posts. The Weil '972 shelf has a U-shaped jaw at each back corner, with the U opening laterally outward to partially encircle a post. The shelf is a semi-rigid flexible plate that is normally bowed slightly upward such that weight on the shelf flattens it and pushes the jaws outward to press against the posts for friction. Since the shelf is cantilevered forward, the weight also twists the jaws to cause the front and rear edges of the jaw to bite into the post, thereby preventing vertical sliding. In order to remove the Weil '972 shelf from its supporting posts, the cantilevered weight must be relieved and the shelf must be tilted such that one jaw slides up and the other jaw slides down its respective post sufficiently to cause one jaw to un-encircle its post. It should be apparent that vertical clearance between a headrest and a seatback may not be sufficient to enable a similarly-designed rack to be attached or removed from a headrest post.
All of the abovedescribed prior art racks have limitations in their ability to satisfactorily mount equipment in vehicles. It is a general object of the present invention to overcome those limitations. Subsidiary objects include making the inventive equipment rack: adaptable for installation in virtually any vehicle with adjustable headrests on the front seat(s); simple and fast to install or remove (in seconds, not minutes); stable with a minimum of rattling and/or jiggling or other movement; unobstructive of the driver's rear view mirror line of sight and of the front seat occupants' view and access to rear seat occupants; with enhanced safety features for passengers in case of sudden stops; unaffected by most movements of the front seats after installation; compact and lightweight; collapsible for storage; pivotable for positioning of an attached viewing screen; and adaptable for holding a wide variety of commonly available players, particularly folding screen DVD players and the like. Other objects of the invention may become apparent in light of the present specification.